An I HATE FRANCE! Post

In life, sadly, one has to deal with the police, either with a traffic ticket, a robbery, a violent situation, or come what may. I was raised to respect officers of the law, for I was conditioned that they are on the side of justice, they are here to protect and serve, and they have the power to right the wrongs of a corrupt world. But, sadly, having a badge doesn't stop bad people in their tracks.

When the reality of what a police officer truly does sets in - they are drowning in paperwork and their jobs just deal with babysitting adults when shit happens - I KNOW it's a tough job with shit pay, that's for sure, but this is their chosen profession, so perhaps I'm a little naive to expect professionalism?

I'm about to regale a true tale of my dealings with French police and my complete surprise turned raging anger at their lack of basic job skills.

I have only needed police assistance on two occasions, and that was TWO TOO MANY, both times, they were, complete wastes of time. I had to fill out a report because my bike was stolen, and I needed a report for insurance reasons. I was completely shocked by their utter lack of training in basic report taking and dealing with their fellow citizens. Ok, maybe I'm not being fair, perhaps they do have training, but from what I experienced, I now truly know that personality mixed with a sense of superiority leads to an overall cluster fuck. Let that sink in. (Granted, I have always sensed this, but experiencing it - textbook!)

The officer I dealt with had trouble working the computer to fill out a report, he even ASKED me to help him do his job.I shit you not, I CANNOT make this shit up. I had a hard time wrapping my head around this reality, and I still do. I remember thinking, 'um, are you serious?!' and that made me wonder, if he couldn't do the simple task of filling out a basic report, what is happening to all those people who are facing real problems? How many have slipped through the cracks?

Then I thought of the terror attack in Nice on July 14, 2016, Bastille Day, where hundreds were hurt and the entire country wounded. During that time, France was under a 'state of emergency' meaning police, government officials should have been working overtime and be high alert to ensure public safety, hence the real definition of being in a state of emergency, but again, perhaps I am mistaken. So, if France was under a 'state of emergency' wouldn't there have been more of a police presence or blockades or additional security measures during that time?​The obvious answer should be a resounding YES, but due to a system that is faulty, perhaps because of red tape, politics, lack of force, lack of funds, corruption, lack of training, or plain and simple apathy -- this is what we get. A false sense of security, which honestly, welcome to life!

Does security really exist? Sure, I can subscribe to the concept of security. But let's go back to the reality of the police officer, who has chosen this profession to assist the public, and who bragged to me about being on the force for years while trying to figure out police codes for a stolen bike to file a basic report, yet asks me, an immigrant, how to work his job, well, it's an astonishing realization.

I then thought about a situation where a friend of mine's son was brutally beaten by a group of men, police let them go perhaps due to procedure, not one of them are behind bars, yet the family is speaking with lawyers to seek justice.

I then thought about another situation where a friend of mine was victimized by a group of men, scared out of her wits, she went to the police for help, but because she didn't speak French, they sent her away. They. sent. the. victim. away.

Then there was the second time when I needed police assistance. Police left without filling out any paperwork, offering any solutions or assistance during my time of heightened duress, and when they asked two questions that HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH THE SITUATION (asked if I had children and if I had money) I answered their questions, but not before pointing out the obvious that their questions HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH THE SITUATION, the police officer said "if you are going to insult, we're leaving." And.they.left.

Hence my utter rage and feelings of betrayal. It was at that moment, I felt my heart harden. I am sad for my past self to have had to experience that situation. In fact, every single one of my examples makes me shake my head and wonder what the fuck kind of civilized society are we subscribing to? What the fuck is going on? Am I fucking going crazy? Is it me? The good news is that every single human being on this planet has asked the same questions, of course context is everything, but it makes me happy to know that I am not alone. Yes, my heart has hardened, but it is not permanent, it'll just take some time to soften up again and that too makes me happy, despite my feelings of Fuck You, Motherfucker! and Fuck the Police and Fuck the lot of ya! and Are you fucking kidding me!? and Ahhhhhhhhhhhh! and Assholes and Fucking Assholes and Go fuck yourselves! and FUUUUUUUUUUCCCCCCCCK!

Bonjour et Bienvenue!

I'm Jennifer... Thank you for stopping by for a spell!

I am a 40-something year old American woman. Born in Texas, raised in Las Vegas!

Frenchified for Life

is a fabulous little lifestyle blog about truly embracing French life!

​My intent is to simply inspire you to create something unique and beautiful in your everyday life. The French have this wonderful and annoying habit of seeing the world through rose colored glasses, might as well learn something from them!

That said, I lift my glass to you!

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